Social Media Differences and Why You Need To Know

Social media should be an integral piece of your digital strategy. There, I said it. But now you’re probably wondering… great, but why? And where too from here? Are you aware of the many differences in social media platforms that are available and also the reasons why you’re using the ones you do each day for your business? Each one is like a different tool in your toolbox; they have a purpose and work best when used that way.

Social media campaigns and content should be carefully crafted not only with the customer, brand, product or service in mind, but also based on the strengths of the channel. Each social channel behaves differently and your users that are interacting with those social channels also have a mindset that behaves differently. As you probably know, the primary demographic using them can be vastly different for each. As you will see from the infographic below produced by Skilled.co, there are differences that separate each one. If the differences are not recognized and understood by your marketing team, the lack of knowledge may prevent your business from reaching the KPIs you want and need.

Marketing teams need to fully understand the differences between all of the social networks in order to maximize their social media strategy.

In the infographic below, you will see why each social media channel is different. These are not all the criteria marketers’ need, but it’s a good starting point. If you take a good look at the differences between all of the social media options, you will discover that if you were a business catering to teens, video, photos, multiple social networks and going online daily are common. However, if you’re a news junky, Reddit and Facebook rule, but Twitter and Tumblr aren’t too far behind. But as far as influencing a purchasing decision, you just may be surprised at what you see. Take a look.

All Social Media Is Not The Same

Communicating on Social media is unique… and it’s even changed a great deal than when it was first was born. Take a look at the timeline for social media and you will see it’s been around longer than you probably thought. It’s also very different from other forms of business communications. The way your brand tells the story on your social media channels should not be a cut-and-paste from brochure content onto a social media post –UGH, please tell me you don’t do that.

Facebook advertising is great for reaching geo-targeted audiences with specific interests and is more targeted than a bull’s-eye itself. You can be set-up and ready to go in a matter of minutes. – YourBrandExposed

Using social media is fun, exciting and can even be instrumental in figuring out what your customers want and need. It’s a fantastic research tool for customer insights and engagement with your brand and others. If you are responsible for your business social media, my suggestion is to get to know your social media tools just like any other tool you use in marketing. In fact, know social like your best friend. But don’t forget, unlike your best friend, the qualities and traits in social media will change frequently and your best friend won’t.

YourBrandExposed.com is a digital marketing and strategy consultancy that works with businesses big and small to solve their most difficult questions surrounding digital, brand development, generating qualified leads, business growth and strategic partnerships. Let us know how we can serve you.